Numerous products have heretofore been produced where both woven and nonwoven fabrics were provided with a layer of foam laminated thereto after which the composite was provided with a suitable backing so as to provide decorative textile materials. In such situations, the fabric which is a costly part of the laminate is completely enclosed by the foam, backing and the like and thus only provides strength for the composite. Further approaches include manufacturing techniques where decorative materials have been produced by expanding a foam on a temporary or permanent backing other than a textile material, applying an adhesive to the foam, flocking the foam and then embossing to provide a desired pattern or design in the material. Embossing has generally been accomplished by engraved roll techniques.
Other prior techniques include foaming and embossing followed by flocking or the like where the product is physically or chemically deformed to assume the desired configuration. Printing an adhesive design onto a substrate, and flocking the adhesive area, followed by embossing has also been practiced. Products manufactured according to the above techniques have been utilized for floor coverings, wall coverings, draperies and for other aesthetic purposes.
Further effort has been expended in the area of articles having decorative fabrics and the like affixed thereto. For example, the floor liner in an automobile is now generally a tufted, backed carpet that has been formed to fit the floor pan of the vehicle. Likewise headliners and trunk liners for vehicles have been produced by utilizing felt, woven and nonwoven textiles and vinyls which are supported in various ways around the particular area of the vehicle.
Problems have been noted in both of the abovedefined areas, namely, the production of decorative textile materials and the utilization of textile materials for internal decoration of automobiles and the like. For example, the woven, nonwoven, knitted, tufted or other textile materials heretofore utilized are expensive. Furthermore, definite limitations exist in the design parameters for such prior art products that simulate textile products. The molding of a tufted carpet, for example, is a very intricate process if one is to properly form the carpet to achieve the desired configuration and at the same time avoid damage to the tufts or pile, the adhesive that may be employed and/or the carpet backing. Hence, while numerous techniques have been devised for the deployment of decorative textile materials as laminates or as the contoured article per se, such techniques have been cumbersome, expensive, and lacking in improved properties for the ultimate, decorative, contoured article.
The present invention provides a unique contoured product having a molded three dimensional decorative surface thereon along with a unique process for the production of same. Products of excellent aesthetic quality are produced which also possess good resilience, abrasion resistance, acoustical and insulative properties, to mention a few. Moreover, there is virturally no limit to the decorative design that may be incorporated into the three dimensional decorative surface of the article being produced. In so doing, the operational process of the present invention avoids the problems of the prior art as does the product produced thereby. The process and product of the present invention represent definite improvements over those previously known and utilized by the prior art.
The prior art is devoid of any teaching or suggestion of the subject invention. Exemplary of the prior art are U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. Re. 23,741 to Summers; U.S. Pat. No. Re. 26,385 to Gilchrist; U.S. Pat. No. 2,106,132 to Feinbloom; U.S. Pat. No. 2,691,611 to Saks; U.S. Pat. No. 2,714,559 to Sheffield et al; U.S. Pat. No. 2,784,630 to Koprow et al; U.S. Pat. No. 2,963,381 to Leimbacher: U.S. Pat. No. 3,194,702 to Geller et al; U.S. Pat. No. 3,196,030 to Petry; U.S. Pat. No. 3,215,584 to McConnell et al; U.S. Pat. No. 3,219,507 to Penman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,224,984 to Palmer; U.S. Pat. No. 3,322,606 to Koller; U.S. Pat. No. 3,365,353 to Witman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,408,248 to Maass; U.S. Pat. No. 3,436,245 to Grundman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,496,054 to Baigas, Jr.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,518,154 to Broadhurst; U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,874 to Spencer; U.S. Pat. No. 3,540,974 to Broadhurst; U.S. Pat. No. 3,575,778 to Wilcox; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,591,401 to Snyder et al.